In a growing number of cases, large companies are turning to M&A to grow their digital capabilities. Virtually all large companies—96%—believe such investments are a central part of their corporate strategy.

Acquiring progressive companies is a much different ballgame than traditional M&A. Large companies must develop a new M&A strategy from target screening through integration.

The year 2017 has seen a paradoxical evolution in cybersecurity threats. On the one hand, large, shocking breaches seem to be on the rise, such as the Equifax intrusion that compromised 143 million Social Security numbers. Massive damages have also been seen at the likes of FedEx and container shipping firm Maersk, both of which said attacks by the NotPetya ransomware would cost them up to US$300m.

Toppan Vintage, a trusted financial printing and communications company, in partnership with Mergermarket, is pleased to present the newest edition of M&A Pulse newsletter. This newsletter features responses from US-based senior corporate executives who shared their insights on the new age of cybersecurity.

Toppan Vintage question: Data breaches such as that of Equifax have become increasingly common across sectors andgeographies. Do you think hackers are becoming more sophisticated, or are companies’ systems more vulnerable? Or both?Leading experts weigh in...

M&A is not a step to be taken lightly. The nuances of a large deal can be mind-bogglingly complex, no matter how enticing the combination appears. Integrating two entities into a single coherent structure takes careful planning and the ability to counter unforeseen problems.

Toppan Vintage, a trusted financial printing and communications company, in partnership with Mergermarket, is pleased to present the newest edition of M&A Pulse newsletter. This newsletter features responses from US-based senior corporate executives who shared their insights on failed deals.

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (the “FCA”), through a Policy Statement, recently introduced a number of new Conduct of Business Sourcebook (“COBS”) rules, effective July 1, 2018, that intend to improve the quality and timeliness of key information made available to investors in advance of an IPO.

The overall goal is to restore the centrality of prospectuses in informing the investment decision of investors.

As of Saturday, January 20 at 12:01 am EST the government officially shut many of its operations. Unfortunately, according to the procedures outlined in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s contingency operation planning document, the federal shutdown could have far-reaching effects for the agency.

According to SEC.gov, in the case of a shutdown the agency will remain open for a limited number of days, fully staffed and focused on the agency's mission. A prolonged shutdown however could impact staff support for EDGAR. According to the SEC’s operations plan:

Although mega-merger volumes were down in 2017 year-over-year, the stage is set in 2018 for a renewed focus on the effects of so-called mega- mergers on businesses and consumers. December 2017 ushered in the announcement of the two latest mega-mergers—the $69 billion CVS-Aetna deal and the proposed $52 billion merger of Disney and 21st Century Fox. Amazon’s recent purchase of Whole Foods was also part of this year’s lineup of blockbuster deals.

Despite the overall drop in the volume of mergers and acquisitions in 2017, the outlook for 2018 is bullish. PwC’s leader of U.S. deals, Bob Saad, said Dec. 14 that he expects a “very strong and active year.”

The SEC, which is itself responsible for disciplining companies for lax cybersecurity policies, had a highprofilebreach of its own in 2017, calling into question the safety of filers’ data.

Toppan Vintage, a trusted financial printing and communications company, in partnership with Mergermarket, is pleased to present the newest edition of M&A Pulse newsletter. This newsletter features responses from US-based senior corporate executives who shared their insights on the new age of cybersecurity.

Toppan Vintage question: Do you think filers should be concerned about the security of the data they file with the SEC given the apparent cybersecurity vulnerabilities in the Commission’s systems? Are there ways for companies to protect themselves from the damage of potential future breaches?Leading experts weigh in...

The job of the CFO is to marshal the stakeholders and resources necessary — IT, business leaders, HR, legal, and C-suite, among others — to ensure that all of the technology and processes are in place and working flawlessly when the new rules kick in.

Experts note that a risk assessment is one of the most critical tasks when evaluating the impact of a new compliance rule. To be effective, the risk assessment team must involve business functions beyond finance.

The pace at which government contractors are engaging in M&A activity has increased notably in recent years. In the past few months alone, several multi-billion-dollar acquisitions within the government contracts sector have been announced.

Government contractor acquisitions frequently provide buyers with increased market share and/or strengthens capabilities. Such acquisitions can also develop a new government contracting capability for an acquirer’s portfolio.

A taxonomy is a classification system that can be used to identify and structure information so it is easy for a consumer to find. For example, a retailer may use a taxonomy for products it is selling online. This taxonomy is likely to include codes and labels that uniquely identify each product and provide information about the products, such as short descriptions, expected delivery times and references to physical shops where the products are available. The retailer is also likely to classify products by category, size, colour and price range. This taxonomy would allow online shoppers to quickly find, review and select specific products.Shoppers would be able to spend their time reviewing products rather than sifting through information.

Taxonomies are also used to allow information to be tagged and exchanged in a structured electronicformat so that it can be accessed quickly and processed cost-effectively by the intended recipient of thatinformation. For example, a shopper can place an online order by selecting a specific product. The retailercan automatically process the shopper’s selection using the underlying computer code of that product.

Data breaches dominated the headlines this fall, as credit agency Equifax and the Securities and Exchange Commission both suffered serious cyberattacks. In light of the hacks, the corporate world is grappling with how to protect itself.

Toppan Vintage, a trusted financial printing and communications company, in partnership with Mergermarket, is pleased to present the newest edition of M&A Pulse newsletter. This newsletter features responses from US-based senior corporate executives who shared their insights on the new age of cybersecurity.

Toppan Vintage question: Given the frequency of data breaches, do you think they are becoming an inevitable part of the modern business environment? Should investors and the public be concerned every time one occurs?Leading experts weigh in...

The certainty that some deals will go wrong — combined with an inability to see warning signs in advance — indicates more resources might be fruitfully devoted to playing out pessimistic scenarios and checking assumptions.

Toppan Vintage, a trusted financial printing and communications company, in partnership with Mergermarket, is pleased to present the newest edition of M&A Pulse newsletter. This newsletter features responses from US-based senior corporate executives who shared their insights on failed deals.

To borrow a phrase from the world of sports, the best offense is a good defense when it comes to managing compliance issues. Delaying the inevitable changes to business processes and technology necessary for regulatory compliance is not a winning strategy. It is much more effective to be proactive and take advantage of the opportunity to not only revamp systems and processes to meet new standards, but also to improve performance and visibility.

It is difficult to keep up with so many sweeping changes to compliance issues, as they impact systems and functionsthroughout the organization. While compliance has primarily been viewed as a finance function, CFOs need to communicate and collaborate with internal experts who will be impacted by changes such as lease accounting and revenue recognition.

Private equity is continuing to attract investor capital in 2017, despite increasingly tough conditions for buyouts. With new fundraising contributing to an already record amount of dry powder, PE firms are facing a competitive dealmaking landscape and rising valuations for targets. With an interesting market, experts disagree on the future of PE exit activity.

Toppan Vintage, a trusted financial printing and communications company, in partnership with Mergermarket, is pleased to present the newest edition of M&A Pulse newsletter. This newsletter features responses from US-based senior corporate executives who shared their insights on the current and future state of unicorn companies.

Toppan Vintage question: What do you expect to see in the way of private equity exit activity over the next 12 months?Leading deal experts weigh in...